Unit 3: Vietnam War The First Televised War

Author/Filmmaker: Bill Corley, NBC News, 1966

MBC Tape Number: TV-1091

Learning objective:
• Students will observe the power and relevance of technology.
• Students will see the war from the journalist's perspective, which is how much of the world saw the Vietnam War in 1966.
• Students will understand the media and professional risks associated with bringing a war into American living rooms via television.

Background information: The Vietnam War was brought into households across the nation thanks to television and reporters that were not afraid to put their lives on the line for a good story. Thanks to radio coverage of previous wars, what had only been imagined in the past had now become a stark reality for Americans, as they graphically watched the atrocities of war unfold in front of them. The compelling impact of broadcast coverage of the Vietnam War and the risks taken by field reporters set a precedence for journalism today. Vietnam was truly the first televised war. Sadly it has not been the last.

Bibliographies:
Encyclopedia of Television, Museum of Broadcast Communications, Editor: Horace Newcomb, Fitzroy Dearborn, l987, ISBN 1884964265
   A comprehensive resource tracing the history of a communications medium that changed the world.
    Education-friendly, engaging, and informative.

The Vietnam Reader, Editor Stuart Nonan, Anchor Books, ISBN 0140265473
   A definitive collection of American fiction and nonfiction about the war.

Vietnam: A History, by Stanley Karnow, Penguin Books, ISBN 0140265473
   Interesting companion to the PBS American Experience Series.

Vietnam: Four American Perspectives, Editor: Patrick Hearden, Purdue University, ISBN 1557530033
   Series of lectures by Sen. George McGovern, General William Westmoreland, Edward Luittwak and Thomas McKormick
   presented at Purdue University.

Documentary summary: While covering the war in Saigon, NBC reporter Bill Corley collaborated with Henry Cook and the NBC News staff to document a new dimension in war reporting - television. The film, released in January 1966, is 30 minutes of authentic front line news reporting of the Vietnam War. Captured by the camera's eye were dramatic pictures of a war hero's leg amputation, a subsequent interview with the decorated soldier, and threatening warfare during a live news broadcast which endangered the life of journalist Ron Nesson. Pictures of the plains of reeds along the Me Kong Delta accompanied Corley's introspective narration. "How does one describe a war tunnel - even with a camera?" Corley asks. The NBC station in Saigon looks like any other television station, but it was not. Landmines, booby traps, and environmental obstacles made live news reporting difficult at best. This documentary clearly illustrates the impact of war on television and television on the war.

Standards: Standards met according to Chicago Public School academic standards, located at http://intranet.cps.k12.il.us/Standards/CAS/cas.html:

• CPS - CASD, DFS
• State goal 16: Social studies: Understand events, trends, individuals and movements, shaping history of Illinois, US, and other nations.
• Learning Standard: Apply skills of historical analysis and interpretation.
• State goal 17: Understand geography and the effects of geography on society, with an emphasis on society with and emphasis on United States.
• Standard a: Locate, describe and explain places, regions, and features of the earth.
• Standard d. Understand historical significance of geography.
• State goal 3: English language arts: Write to communicate for a variety of purposes.
• Learning Standard c: Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a variety of purposes.
• State goal 5: Use language arts to acquire, assess, and communicate information.
• Learning Standard b: Analyze and evaluate information acquired from various sources.

Pre- and Post-Discussion Questions

Pre-Discussion Question

1. List five facts about the Vietnam War. How did you learn about them?
   
2. Think about a story that you have read and seen on film. What was more memorable, the reading of the book or the watching of the movie? Why?

Post-discussion Questions

1. A reporter has an obligation to report the news as it happens. Do you think that they should be responsible for what they put on the news? (For example: graphic pictures of death or destruction)
   
2. During World War II, everyone rallied around the flag and supported the men fighting in the war. When the soldiers came home they came home as heroes. The Vietnam War created social unrest; the “right” or “wrong” of the war was debated in every household across the nation; and people protested while young men fled the country to avoid the draft. Soldiers who returned to America were not embraced as heroes, and many were looked at with shame and often called names like “baby killer.” Do you think that televising the war helped create the negative attitude of the American public?

Suggested Projects/Activities

1. Visit a newsroom of a local TV station.
   
2. Invite a news reporter to visit your classroom.
   
3. Transform your classroom into a news bureau. Produce and tape a news broadcast of school interest.
4. Have students produce their own documentary focusing on a current event in local, state, national or international news.

Feedback: Have suggestions or comments regarding this lesson plan? E-mail us at education@museum.tv.